#1-Let's Get This Did — tyson hand-did

Let's Get This Did | Alright, alright - time to apply some finish and take final steps to get this here git-tar finished up. There are many different approaches to finish from a hand rubbed french polish to sprayed on lacquer. I am taking somewhat of an easy route on #1 and using TruOil. TruOil is sold as a gunstock finishing product, but many hobby luthiers use it on guitars as well. It is basically a boiled linseed oil product. It is easy to apply and in the end it gives a nice finish that really shows beauty of the wood.

I also knew that I wanted to do more of a satin finish on this guitar. Although those really nice high gloss finishes do like nice, I prefer the satin finishes which are smooth to the touch. They also hide imperfections and finger prints and such. I need a LOT of imperfection hiding on this guitar. My goal on this first one was to focus on the tone and playability. I knew if I could get those right, I can focus on the visual aesthetics next go around.

TruOil is just wiped on with a soft cloth and allowed to penetrate the wood, dry, and reapply. I will put about five coats on, rubbing everything with 0000 steel wool between coats. I only have pics of the body, but I will do the same process to the neck and headstock. Here are a few pics.

A shot of the "before."

There are translucent, almost iridescent bands running through the mahogany that doesn't come through in the pics.

Even though I have beat the cedar top to death with dings and nicks, the color an grain pattern of the wood is very nice.

Another view of the top - I hate that I gouged up such a beautiful piece of cedar. I know what to do and what NOT to do next time.

Finally, after the coats of TruOil have dried pretty good, I do a final rub with the steel wool and a little touch of paste wax. This give the satin finish and makes the surface of the guitar very smooth and silky.

Although there are a lot of imperfections, the guitar has come out looking better than I thought it would. I will have another round of touch-up and polishing after I get the bridge and neck attached. So far so good, only one more stage of assembly to go.